Bid to re-open Salford pub where Lee Erdmann was shot blocked over 'Noonan family funding' fears

A Salford pub has been stopped from reopening – amid fears it could have been bankrolled by the notorious Noonan family using a £1m lottery win. Landlady Cheryl Gibbons and her husband Patrick wanted to relaunch The Wellington pub in Regent Road, which has been closed since dad-of-five Lee Erdmann was shot dead inside.

The Noonans were said to be involved in a bid to reopen The Wellington pub, where Lee Erdmann, inset, was shot dead in 2011

A Salford pub has been stopped from reopening – amid fears it could have been bankrolled by the notorious Noonan family using a £1m lottery win.

Landlady Cheryl Gibbons and her husband Patrick wanted to relaunch The Wellington pub in Regent Road, which has been closed since dad-of-five Lee Erdmann was shot dead inside.

But a licensing panel heard that Greater Manchester Police had received information that the purchase of the pub was being funded by criminals.

A GMP representative said: "There are concerns that this could be funded from other individuals within the criminal fraternity in the area."

Mrs Gibbons dismissed the suggestion but confirmed that police had asked her about rumours she was being funded by the Noonan family.

Mandy Burgess, the widow of late crime boss Damian Noonan and aunt of Salford killer Kiaran Stapleton, lives nearby and recently scooped £1 million in the EuroMillions Raffle.

Landlady Mrs Gibbons and her husband Patrick, who run the Bricklayers Arms in Ordsall, both applied for the licence to reopen The Wellington. The couple were not the licensees at the time of the unsolved murder of Mr Erdmann in September 2011 but have previously run the pub between 1995-2000.

Mrs Gibbons strenuously denied claims she was backed by the Noonans. She said: "The police have asked me if it is being mob funded. People are talking about the Noonans winning £1 million on the lottery. It isn’t - it’s absolutely ridiculous.

"Mandy Burgess – I think I’ve said about five words to her when I saw her in the bank. She’s never been in the Bricklayers – this is just gossip." When asked by the panel if she personally knows the Noonan family, Mrs Gibbons replied: "I’ve known them for many years. When I used to have The Wellington I used to let the youngsters play pool to keep them from robbing cars. But they never gave me any trouble."

The licensing panel refused the application on the grounds that it could increase crime and disorder in the area. It told Mrs Gibbons: "There have been serious incidents of violence including an unsolved murder and there was no cooperation from anybody at the premises to help.

"The premises is in a challenging area. The community would feel threatened and vulnerable if the premises were to reopen." Mrs Gibbons said she intends to appeal.

Lee Erdmann’s mum Patricia, who had campaigned against the application, said: "I’m really happy that it’s been refused. I thought it was so disrespectful for them to apply in the first place. It was like they were walking over his grave."

M.E.N. wins fight to report hearing

A REQUEST for the pub application to be heard in private was thrown out – thanks to the M.E.N.

Cheryl Gibbons asked Salford licensing panel if the hearing could take place without members of the Press allowed in. She claimed that reporting of her bid to reopen The Wellington had already caused unnecessary alarm in the community and we should not be allowed to hear evidence being given to the panel.

Representatives from Greater Manchester Police said they had no objection to the media being excluded from the meeting. But the M.E.N. argued it was in the public interest for the evidence to be reported so that local people could be aware of why decisions had been made.

We added that hundreds of residents had objected to the licensing application and they should not be denied a full and fair account of what happened at the hearing. The committee decided that the panel should be held in public.

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